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An overview of the field of political psychology, defined as the scientific study of the interaction of political & psychological processes: a bidirectional interaction. Some of the difficulties in achieving & sustaining a scientific approach in this area are described. The content of political psychology is described in terms of eight substantive areas of research in the field: (1) the individual as political actor; (2) political movements; (3) the politician or political leader; (4) political alignments & structures; (5) political intergroup relations; (6) political processes; (7) case studies; & (8) human development & the political economy. Summaries of several illustrative studies in political psychology are provided. 2 Figures, 65 References. AA.

ALTERNATIVE THEORIES-"SOCIAL MOBILIZATION" AND "URBAN ANOMIE" ARE EXAMINED USING 1968 S.R.C. DATA. THREE METHODOLOGICAL TOOLS ARE USED FORMING A CASUAL MODEL: OVERALL, THE RESULTS SHOW LITTLE INDEPENDENT ASSOCIATION BETWEEN THE URBAN VARIABLES AND INVOLVEMENT. TRENDS INDICATE THAT LARGENESS MAY HAVE A SLIGHT MOBILIZING EFFECT. A PARTIAL REPLICATION IS FOUND IN ALMOND AND VERBA DATA.

Alternative theories—"social mobilization" and "urban anomie"— predict different relationships between urbanism and political involvement, i.e., that urbanism stimulates, or that urbanism alienates individuals. (Dahl has predicted a curvilinear association.) This study examines these theories using the 1968 Michigan S.R.C. election survey. Three methodological tools are employed— formulating a causal model among political psychological variables, distinguishing size of polity from size of urban area, and using path analysis—to answer three questions: the effect of urbanism, the effect of polity size, and the effect of their interaction. Overall, the results show little independent association be-tween the urban variables and involvement. Trends indicate that largeness may have slight mobilizing effects even though it also slightly reduces sense of political efficacy, and that the mobilization is a shift in involvement from local to national politics. A partial replication is obtained in the Almond and Verba data.

"Die Psychologie des politischen Handelns wird anhand einer Typologie der politischen Beteiligung und einer Erklärung der Motivation des einzelnen zu solcher Teilnahme untersucht. Die Konzepte der postmateriellen Werte und der sozialen Grenzen des Wachstums werden vorgestellt, um zu einer Erklärung des Engagements in der Umweltpolitik beizutragen, die auf der Interessenlage der Beteiligten basiert. Das Konzept des Umweltbewußtseins wird differenziert erläutert und ein Profil der Umweltschützer gezeichnet. Befunde, die die Verflechtungen von Wertsystem, Zufriedenheit mit der Demokratie und Bewertungen von Umweltproblemen und Umweltschutzgruppen zeigen, werden dargestellt. Die Befunde erhellen den Zusammenhang zwischen der Interessenlage der Befragten und einer Stellungnahme zu Aspekten der Umweltproblematik." (Autorenreferat)

This paper explains Plato's conception of the relation between politics and "political religion" (ideology) in a nonliberal participatory republican system. The discussion is in the form of a commentary on the drama of a part of Plato's Laws. The underlying methodological assumption is that Plato presented his political teaching not so much through the speeches as through the drama of the dialogue, and that he held this to be the most appropriate form for political science because in this way political science can most effectively stimulate thought about its subject matter, the psyche involved in social action.Following Plato, we focus first on the psychological needs such a political system generates and attempts to satisfy through civil religion. We then move to a consideration of how political "theology" serves to mediate between science and society, or the philosopher and the city.The essay is intended to contribute to the Montesquieuian project engaging the attention of more and more political theorists: the endeavor to help contemporary political science and psychology escape from the trammeling parochialism of exclusive attention to twentieth century theoretical categories and empirical experiences.